St. Ben’s to Host Annual Festival of Cultures Event

ST. JOSEPH -- You can try new foods, listen to different styles of music and learn more about other cultures Saturday night in St. Joseph.

The College of St. Benedict and St. John's University is hosting their Festival of Cultures event at the Haehn Campus Center on the St. Ben's campus.

Brandyn Woodard is the director of intercultural and international student relations at the College of St. Benedict and St. John's University. He says the event is a great way to learn about different traditions and cultures.

"It's an opportunity for community members, but particularly our St. Ben's and St. John's community members, to learn about, celebrate, appreciate and honor the rich cultures that we have present on campus."

Part of the event will include sampling food from different regions of the world, that will take place from 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. Then from 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. students will be doing cultural performances as well as a fashion show.

Woodard says the goal of the evening is to start conversations and hopefully everyone will learn something new about someone else.

"We really want folks to engage with others who are different from them, those who are similar to them. To have real conversations about what it means to co-create community. Especially when we are living in times and a place where it is more segregated and polarized. I would like to think that this would be a time for us to get outside of our comfort zones a little bit to learn something new."

This year will be the 21st annual Festival of Cultures event. It is free to attend.